


Losing Me

by Insert_clever_name



Series: 101 Ways [1]
Category: 101 Dalmatians (1996), The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
Genre: Cruella is a bean, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Miranda is a great mentor, Reconciliation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:48:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27096067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Insert_clever_name/pseuds/Insert_clever_name
Summary: Christmas Eve brings second chances for Andy and Cruella with the help of none other than Miranda Priestly.
Relationships: Andrea Sachs/Cruella de Vil (101 Dalmatians), Miranda Priestly/Andrea Sachs
Series: 101 Ways [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1977676
Comments: 10
Kudos: 89





	Losing Me

**Author's Note:**

> So this isn't a part of my other Cruella/Andy story but I have massive writer's block about that story. I'm just gonna upload the little Andy/Cruella stories I've written in it's own collection. Some of them will be related, some won't. Either way, enjoy!

Andy wonders, not for the first time, how she got here. A shiver shoots up her spine, and she pulls the thick winter coat she'd borrowed from the Closest months ago around her body tightly. Her eyes take in the vibrant red door that seemed to stare back at her, mocking her silently. Briefly, she thought about what her friends and family would say if they knew she was here, in Paris, on Christmas Eve. The thought hadn't occurred to her the night before when she booked the tickets in her quiet, lonely New York apartment. She knew it would be a mixed bag, mostly from Lilly not liking her ex lover so much near the end...or the beginning. Her parents had been very accepting, which she attributed to the fact that she was raised by peace loving, pot smoking Hippies who were quite open with her and her siblings growing up and love and relationships and everything in between. 

She knew, from countless phonecalls home over the last year, that her parents were firmly on the side of her ex, and encouraged Andy to bridge the gap between them and fix what had been broken. Andy, unfortunately, was a stubborn woman and she hadn't been ready to make nice. She knew their breakup was initially not her fault, but their estrangement had been. She could even admit that she'd taken the job at Runway because Miranda had reminded her so much of what she'd lost, and yet she'd been so much different that it left Andy in a whirlwind of confused emotions. In the end, as she stood by that fountain in this very city, phone in hand, she'd met Miranda's eyes and the older woman and let her in just enough to show her that she didn't want to be like the other disappointments in Miranda's life. She realized she was making the same mistake she'd made with her ex, and in the moment she corrected her mistake and scurried across the street. 

Miranda hadn't said a word about it, but she noticed when they returned to New York, Emily had received a promotion, and while his Job title had remained the same, Nigel had begun to take a much more active role in the magazine. Of course, Miranda never explained herself, but the small looks they shared from them on held a level of respect Andy had never been on the receiving end of from Miranda. A month later, as the chaos of Fashion Week wore off, Andy revived a call from the hiring manager for The New Yorker. A sudden opening, a lunch meeting and a few late nights writing the best article of her life thus far saw her almost stumbling into the Office on Monday morning.

As she sat Miranda's coffee on her desk, the older woman had glanced up, gave her a nod and as she went back to work, Andy heard a nearly silent, "Congratulations, Andrea. Do not disappoint me." 

Before Andy could consider this, her phone rang and she was offered a job that paid so much she'd had to see it in writing to fully grasp what she was hearing. Miranda demanded her one week resignation, and then, as they worked late into the night, Miranda had offered to share a meal. That was the beginning of what Andy was now confident was a friendship. When Christmas rolled around, Miranda had been in a particularly good mood and took off for Christmas a few days before Christmas Eve. She'd offered to include Andy in the small vacation she was taking to Sunny Mexico with the girls, but Andy had fallen into a depressed pit and hadn't wanted to fake a smile or ruin anyone's time. Miranda ended their call with sage advice, followed by the dial tone. 

"Whatever it is you're missing, Andrea, whoever it is, I would advise you to see to remedying the issue. You may not like who you become, otherwise."

And that, ironically, was how Andy found herself in Paris, staring at this red door. Biting her lip, she finally plucked up the courage to knock, hearing the sound echo in her ears as she stepped down one step and waited. The seconds felt like hours, and she had just convinced herself to turn and go home, when the door swung open. 

Andy's eyes lifted, and there stood her ex. She had changed so much and yet not at all, Andy realized. Their year apart had been nothing but good to her, if anything. Her thin, lanky form had more heft to it, her sharp, angular jaw softened and rounded with the evidence of a change in diet. Dark eyes were sharp, more focused than Andy remembered ever seeing them and her signature white and black hair was long, spilling past her shoulders in loose, vaguely wild curls that were more wavy than anything else. Her skin was still as pale as Andy remembered, but it also had a healthy flush to it. 

"Andy, Darling I-," Cruella hesitated, "I wasn't expecting you." 

"That makes two of us," Andy admits, "Can I come in?"

"Of course, of course," she moved aside, allowing Andy in out of the cold air. 

"Horace and Jasper have gone home to London for the holidays," Cruella seemed nervous, and Andy was thrown off by how different she seemed, "I would offer you something to eat, but well…"

Cruella gave a wry smile, motioning to the kitchen that no doubt went untouched since the fire a year ago. Andy grinned at the memory. Cruella had been attempting breakfast in bed, but failed to mention she had no idea how to cook. A call to the fire department and a manic episode later about her failure, and Andy found herself in an upscale restaurant eating crepes. 

"It's ok, I ate at the airport," Andy sighed, taking in the changes to Cruella's home. 

Everything was bright, she realized. Not as much black, with only the couches and end tables being the color. The walls and marble floors were all white, with splashes of red breaking up the decor. Red. Andy's favorite color. 

"Do you like it," Cruella's voice sounded anxious, causing Andy to turn. 

"It's gorgeous," Andy admits, "why the change?"

Cruella looked conflicted, because she seemed to relax and speak after a few seconds of thought, "before...you made comments about how dark and dreary it was."

"I didn't mean for you to change your house, Cru-"

"I know," Cruella takes her hands, "but I've recently come to the conclusion that you were correct... about a great many things…"

Andy felt her stomach flutter at the contact, and she didn't pull her hand away. Cruella's face brightened into almost a child like glee, and Andy felt like in that moment nothing had changed. 

"How long will you be in the city," Cruella broke the silence, leading them to a sinfully comfortable black leather couch. 

"I don't know," Andy admits, looking down at her hands, "I don't even know why I'm here, if I'm honest." 

"...oh," Cruella's joy had suddenly fizzled out, and her dark eyes had glazed over. 

Andy saw this and her own heart sank. She realized that regardless of why, this is where she was. She had a choice in front of her. A choice she'd made before and regretted the outcome. Cruella had clearly thought she'd come here to reunite, and she knew, deep down, that was the truth. Her own stubbornness had forced her hand this time. She wouldn't let it happen again

"Tell me how you've been," Andy spoke, causing Cruella's eyes to focus in on her again. 

A slight frown marred her brows, before she spoke, with a calmness that alarmed Andy, "Miserable. Angry. A tad homicidal, but a little therapy cleared that right up." 

Andy nearly choked on her own spit when she saw the serious look on Cruella's face. Cruella remained impassive, but Andy could see the flashes of anger behind her eyes as she spoke. 

"I-" Andy wasn't even sure what to say, "I'm glad you got the help you needed, Cruella. You're doing better now, I hope." 

"Pah, hardly," Cruella waved her off, "it was court ordered, you see. Some crock pot psychologist deemed me mentally unfit to stand trial and so I was carted off to the Looney bin with the masses." 

"Court order," Andy wasn't sure she wanted to know, but she asked anyways, "what did you do?" 

"I threw my stiletto at an airline ticket agent," Cruella waved her off, "one stiletto and suddenly you're a terrorist." 

"Cruella," Andy covered her mouth in surprise. 

"Perhaps it wouldn't have been as bad if the heel itself wasn't a new design," Cruella seemed a little bashful about what she was about to say, "a dagger blade was both impractical and apparently lethal."

"You threw a knife at a ticketing agent," Andy wasn't sure this story could get worse until that moment.

"A stiletto," Cruella corrected her, "but it's all in the past now. I pay my lawyers good money for a reason, you see."

"How did you get out of terrorist charges," Andy felt a headache coming on. 

Cruella gave a wry smile, chuckling a bit to herself, "I signed a deal, obviously. The charges were changed to assault, and I was ordered to stay 9 months in a psychiatric hospital where I was subjected to cruel and unusual torture." 

Andy wasn't sure if she was serious or dramatic. It was Cruella, so there was no telling what that meant. 

"They made me talk, Andy, Darling. About my feelings and my childhood as if I'm some mental case," Cruella scoffed, before her scowl lessened, "...but it did make me realize a few things while I was there." 

This caused Andy to lean closer, "yeah?" 

"I think perhaps I'd like to begin showing my designs again," Cruella admitted. 

Andy's eyes widened at the revelation. Cruella had angrily shut down any attempt she'd ever made to encourage her to begin showing her designs. Andy wasn't a fashion expert, especially then, but even she saw the genius in the designs Cruella sometimes spent weeks pouring over, only to lock them away in a temperature controlled storage under her home. 

"Cruella that's amazing," Andy grinned, "I'm happy for you!" 

The soft smile she got in return made her heart flutter. 

"I wonder... perhaps, if you don't mind, of course, you would allow me a bit of your time to speak on how we left things," The words were almost jumbled as Cruella struggled to ask and not just brute force her way into the conversation. 

"I think we should," Andy agreed, "there are things I owe you an apology for," Andy sighed. 

Cruella looked confused at her words, "I was solely responsible for pushing you to say those things, Andy, Darling. I was...I was a fool, you see. A jealous fool." 

"What could you possibly have been jealous over," Andy tilted her head, but was cut off-

"Your passion for your work," Cruella admits, "I was an old fool for ever demanding you give up your dreams to be...a glorified housewife! Honestly," Cruella scoffs at herself, "I became no better than those smug bastards my father- I was no better than a man. You're brilliant, Andy. Who was I to deny the world that brilliance." 

Andy felt like she couldn't breathe. The words, coupled with the honest expression on Cruella's face as she looked out of the front windows onto the snowy streets was enough to make her knees weak. Never, in their 2 years together, had Cruella ever admitted to being wrong flat out. It was always "if that's how you feel" or "I will endeavour to keep my thoughts to myself in the future." To hear her so easily just say she was wrong...it was mind boggling. 

"I didn't exactly have the best reaction to our engagement," Andy finally admits, "I was a young, liberal college student and I definitely acted like it."

Cruella gave her an indulgent smile, "it was one of the first things I noticed about you, truly. Even in email form, you were quite firm and it intrigued me." 

Andy blushed, looking down. Her first year of graduate school had been one for the records. By her second semester, she'd swiped the Editor in Chief position from a classmate. He'd been gunning for the position since he'd started the program, and when the older EiC graduated, they'd both been in the running for the position despite her being a year behind him. It was basically a dogfight over the summer, and it had been close. To make the final decision, their department head assigned them topics out of their comfort zone. Blake had been assigned an investigative piece on a local politician who had been disgraced after a fraud investigation stopped his run for governor, and Andy had been given Cruella. At the time, no one had seen her in almost a decade and she'd been an idol for her department head. 

After a week she managed to get an email address, and the rest was history. Cruella, after a few back and forth emails, had disappeared after giving Andy her interview. She arrived out of nowhere a month later at the newspaper, nearly giving her department head a heart attack. She'd all but demanded Andy have lunch with her and Andy never looked back. 

"I was a stubborn kid," Andy admitted, but smiled. 

"And a year has changed that," Cruella let out a dry but genuine laugh, giving Andy an amused grin. 

"A year working for Miranda Priestly," Andy grins at the surprised look on Cruella's face, "I know...that should have been my first clue that I missed you."

"You miss me," Cruella looked like she'd just signed the world over to her. 

"You're unforgettable, Cruella de Vil," Andy shrugs. 

The laugh Cruella let out was more of a maniacal cackle, but it made Andy grin. She felt her heart lighten just a little, seeing the joy in the dark eyes. 

Andy smiled distractedly as she noticed Miranda's name flash across her phone screen. Slipping out from under Cruella's sleeping form, she laid the older woman more comfortably on the sofa they were resting on and made her way into the kitchen. She glanced back once to make sure Cruella was asleep, before she answered the buzzing phone. 

"Merry Christmas, Miranda," Andy said cheerfully. 

She was greeted by an amused chuckle and Miranda's smooth voice, "I take it you're solved your problem?" 

Andy blushed, grateful Miranda couldn't see, though she was sure she'd know regardless, "I did. I'm in Paris."

"Paris," Miranda sounded surprised, "what on Earth could bring you to such a location?" 

"The love of my life," Andy admitted, absently drawing invisible patterns on the marble countertop, "I've been running from how things ended between us but when you said what you said, you made me realize I had run for long enough." 

"Hmm," Miranda sounded like she was absorbing the information, "I'm happy for you, Andrea. You are a more brave woman than I. In your position, I did not make the same decision." 

Andy frowned when she heard the regret in Miranda's voice, "There are second chances out there for everyone, I think."

"Perhaps," Miranda agreed, "though I don't have any interest in second chances. I've accepted my past mistakes and I do not regret them. Now, do I get to know who this mysterious person is?" 

Andy paused, glancing back towards the living room fondly. Cruella was sound asleep, clutching her pillow to her chest. 

"Actually," Andy bites her lip, frowning as she wonders how upset Cruella would be at her for discussing her work with Miranda, "I wanted to talk to you about something related to that."

"I see," Miranda's tone was curious, and Andy knew she held her full attention, "go on."

"My ex is...a mutual friend...I think," Andy frowns as she tries to remember if Cruella and Miranda have actually crossed paths. 

"So not a man, then," Miranda's attempt at a joke caused Andy to let out an amused scoff. 

"You got me there," Andy let out a slight giggle at the irony, "not a man. A designer, though. She hasn't shown in...quite a few years, but she's well established."

"Hmm," Miranda sounded like she was going through a mental list, before Andy heard her breath hitch, "surely you can't mean- Andrea." 

"Yes," Andy breathed, "Cruella had the same reaction when she heard we'd worked together." 

"How on Earth did you come into Runway dressed the way you did for that interview when you were the lover of Cruella de Vil." 

Of course that's Miranda's first thought. 

"Oh it's worse," Andy happily corrected Miranda, "she was my fiance and I had an entire closet full of clothes she designed especially for me. Still do, actually. It's all back home in Ohio." 

For the first time in her life, Andy thought she heard Miranda choke on her own words. The phone was silent, until Miranda spoke again, "you will have those designs sent to the townhouse immediately. No doubt you have no room for them between the polyester blends and the cotton sleepwear." 

Andy laughs, her grin nearly splitting her face in half, "oh god. I couldn't, Cru would never let me hear the end of it if I let you have those designs. She was very clear that they were for me and me only. She'd never agree to allowing them to be in runway, even if I asked her." 

Miranda scoffed, a sound she rarely if ever made, "foolish woman." 

"But…" Andy lingered on the word, "you didn't hear this from me, but I heard that she's ready to show her work again, and I also heard that her soon to be girlfriend is close to a certain Editor in Chief and would be more than happy to put in a good word."

"Well you'd better," Miranda said playfully, "I didn't give that glowing letter of recommendation for nothing."

Andy shook her head in shock, hearing the joking tone in Miranda's voice, "did you just make a joke?" 

"It does happen occasionally," Miranda said dryly. 

Andy had been so surprised she failed to notice a lanky fashion designer moving into the kitchen. She nearly jumped when she felt thin but warm arms wrapping around her waist. 

"Jesus, Cru, you scared me," Andy frowned, hand on her chest. 

"You left me," Cruella's tired voice held a pout, as she buried her face in Andy's neck. 

"I'm sorry, sweetie," Andy smiled, "I didn't want to wake you with my phone call."

"Who is it," Cruella eyed the phone suspiciously, "is it Kathleen? Tell her we'll call her in the morning." 

"No, it's Miranda," Andy corrects her, denying it being her mother on the phone. 

"What does Miranda want at 11 at night," Cruella's look turned jealous, "does she usually call this late?" 

"When I worked for her," Andy admits, "but she's in Mexico. It's in the middle of the day for her." 

"Oh," Cruella frowned, "what does she want then?" 

"Just wanted to speak," Andy shrugs, "I was mentioning that you're thinking about showing your designs." Andy realized she'd been ignoring Miranda as she brought her up, "Sorry Miranda, Cruella just startled me."

"Is she still on the line," Cruella looked interested, "hand over the phone, Darling. I shall speak to her about my work." 

Andy's eyes widened, "really?"

"Yes well," Cruella sniffed arrogantly, "a friend of yours is a friend of mine, Darling. Besides, who else would show my work? Anna? With all that color? Pah!" 

She takes the phone and begins speaking to Miranda before Andy can even say anything. Andy watches in bemusement as Cruella leaves the kitchen with her phone glued to her ear. She huffs a laugh, shaking her head as she follows the taller woman up to her study.


End file.
